GROUNDING
Goodgroundingandpropersurgesuppressionareanintegralpartofproperinstallationfor
a gate operator system. One or all of the following may require surge suppressors: high
voltagepowerlines,lowvoltagepowerlines,telephonelines,datalines,lowvoltagecontrol
lines and loops. How much surge suppression is required depends upon how susceptible
the area is to lightning and power surges. Regardless, good grounding is essential. To
realizemaximumprotection,propergroundingandpropersurge suppressionisabsolutely
necessary.
If the circuit breaker box is located close to the gate operator system, for example, in a
guard house, then the ground from that circuit can be used to ground the gate operator
system.Eliminateall90°bendsingroundwiresandkeepaminimumofthreefeetbetween
thesurgesuppressorandtheequipmentbeingprotected.
Ifthepowersourceorcircuitbreakerboxisnotlocatedclosetothegateoperatorsysteman
Isolated Ground Zone (IGZ) needs to be created. An IGZ can also be created if the circuit
breaker box is located close by the gate operator system. An IGZ is an imaginary circle
drawn around the gate operator system. The gate operator system not only includes the
gateoperatorsandcontrolpanel,butalloftheaccessoriesanddevicesassociatedwithitat
that controlled entry point. This includes loop detectors, card readers, digital entries,
telephone entries, any device that has a ground or requires a ground and ali of the surge
suppressors. The ground bus is a common ground point calied a Single Point Ground
(SPG). It is used to bond all the equipment and device grounds in the IGZ together. The
SPG is very important because it helps eliminate different ground potentials that can be
present on the equipment. In such cases, equipment damage occurs even with surge
suppressors.
Do not use or connect the ground wire coming from the circuit breaker box. By using an
Isolated Ground Zone, you are separating the gate operator system from the house or
building ground. This eliminates ground potentials. It is recommended that the ground bus
be located in a separate NEMAtype enclosure.All grounds will be tied to this ground bus.
Somepointstoremember:
Keep all ground wires as straight as possible. Do not have any sharp 90° bends. Have a
minimum of 3 feet of wire between the surge suppressor and the equipment being
protected.
Equipment ground wire should be a minimum of 12AWG. The main ground wire from the
bus bar to the ground rod shouid be an 8 or 6AWG copper wire. Ground rod should be a
minimumof10feetinlength,longerdependingonlocalsoilconditions.
For more information regarding good grounding practices check: National Electric Code
art. 250; IEEE Emerald Book, standard 100; International Association of Electric
Inspectors.
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